Masonry faced wall board and process of producing the same



Oct. 15, 1935.

w. R. DENNIS 2,017,587

MASONRY FACED WALL BOARD AND PROCESS OF PRODUCING THE SAME Original Filed June 29, 1931 2 Sheets-Shet 1 Oct. 15, 1935. w R DENNls 2,017,587

MASONRY FACED WALL BOARD AND PROCESS OF PRODUCING THE SAME Original Filed June 29, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Oct. 15, 1935 UNITED STATES MASONRY FACED WALL BOARD AND PROCESS OF PRODUCING THE SAME Walter R. Dennis, Minneapolis, Minn.

Application June 29, 1931, Serial No. 547,643 Renewed March 22, 1935 6 Claims.

inafter described and defined in the claims. The

invention also comprises an improved article of manufacture produced by the improved method or process.

Hitherto, masonry facings such as thin bricks have been secured to previously formed insulating boards by means of cement but the adhesion between the two has not been satisfactory, due to the fact that the cement or mortar used to connect the brick to the previously formed wall boarder insulating material, does not make an intimate and well-commingled union with the latter.

By my improved process, as will presently appear, the cement or mortar is intimately and deeply commingled with the fibers or fibrous ma terial of the wall board or insulating material during the process of compression and formation of said wall board or insulating .material. The term wall board is herein used in a broad sense to include any kind'of a backing or body substance made from such materials as exoelsior, wood pulp, shredded corn stalks, hay, wire grass, mineral fiber and the like, and all of which materials are herein included under the generic term fibrous materials.

The following is a preferred and commercial way of carrying out the improved method and producing the improved product, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, wherein like characters indicate like parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings:

Figs. 1, '2, 3, 4 and 5 are transverse vertical sections taken through the molding apparatus illustrating the progressive steps of the process as preferably carried out;

Fig. 6 is a plan view showing the flask and mold board of the molding apparatus and the completed masonry faced insulating board contained therein; and

Fig. '7 is a perspective showing the product, to wit: the masonry faced insulating wall board removed from the molding apparatus.

Of the parts of the molding apparatus, the numeral 8 indicates the mold board, the numeral 9 the flask, the numeral II] the top or presser plate and the numeral H the plunger, which latter, in practice, will be the movable element of a press, which as shown in Fig. 5, further comprises a frame l2 having cross-beams l3 on which the mold board 8 is detachably or replaceably seated. The flask,'as shown, is made up of four wall-forming plates having overlapping lugs l4 with aligned'perforations through which pins l5 are passed, to rigidly but detachably hold the wall-forming plates together when the flask is set up. The flask when set up, is placed on the mold board 8 and is arranged to be interlocked therewith by a plurality of lock dogs I6 shown as pivoted to the mold board 8 and having free ends that work through openings ll in the side members of the wall plates of the flask. The wall plates of the flask are formed with offset portions 9 and the presser plate I0 is formed with core-acting lugs Ill arranged to provide the end product, shown in Fig. '7, with an offset wall board base. To form the end product with spaced offset projecting brick ends, core blocks it are placed in the flask on the mold board 8, as best shown in Fig. 6.

As the first or preparatory step of the process, core blocks l8 are placed in the flask upon the mold board 8 adjacent the end plates of the flask in offset arrangement, best illustrated in Fig. 6; and the bricks l9 are properly laid within the flask and upon the mold board as also best shown in Fig. 6. When it is desired to provide the end product with pointed or countersunk joints, pointed strips are laid upon the mold board 8 between the bricks. These pointing strips may be of wood or metal, and in some instances, may be made of loose sand. The condition at the end of the so-called first step is indicated in Fig. 1.

The second step of the process consists in pointing mortar 2! preferably colored, between the joints of the bricks and upon the parting strips. This so-called second step is shown in Fig. 2.

The next or so-called third step of the process consists in spreading a layer 22 of 'mortar preferably of Portland cement and sand, over the entire exposed upper face of the section made up of facing brick, as shown in Fig. 3.

The so-called fourth step of the process consists in placing the board or insulation forming material 23 in the flask overthe layer of mortar or cement 22. This board or insulation forming material may, as above indicated, be of a material known as excelsior, wood pulp, shredded corn stalks, hay, wire grass, mineral fiber, etc. This fibrous material is dipped into or saturated with a fluid by mixture of water and Portland cement, which is in such fluid condition that it will quite freely run from the fibers, leaving suflicient liquid cement adhering thereto to subsequently firmly unite the fibers. This saturated fiber is then placed in the flask and the presser plate It is applied as shown in Fig. 4. The cement-saturated fibrous material, when applied as shown in Fig; 4, will be approximately twice the final thickness of the completed board.

As the next and last step in the operation, the

complete mold is placed in the press and the presser ring I0 is subjected to pressure sufiicient to compress the saturated fiber, substantially as shown in Fig. 5. While the presser plate I 0 is forced down by the press, as shown in Fig. 5, the latch dogs are pressed in so as to hold the presser plate down after it has been relieved from the pressure of the press. The mold with its contents may be then removed from the press and other molds may be applied to the press. The compression of the fibrous material just above described, of course, takes place before the mortar or cement 22 has set and hence it follows that the fibers will be pressed into the cement 22 and the cement 22 will be pressed into the fibrous ma-. terial so that a very strong union between the two will be formed. The contents of the mold should be left therein until all of the cement has set and hardened sufi ciently to maintain a good joint and the permanent condition of the fibrous material. When the cement adhering to the fibers of the board-forming material has set, the board will be given a very rigid permanent char acter, but it will be of a very cellular formation and will not only have great strength but will have high heat-insulating efficiency.

By reference to Fig. 7, it will be noted that a plurality of masonry faced insulating boards may be assembled in lapping arrangement which will entirely hide the joints between the sections. The sections are adapted to be readily secured to the studding of a building by driving, for example, nails 24 through the board 231 at points shown on Fig. 7. In carrying out the process commercially, of course, a plurality of molding devices will be required.

When pointed or countersunk joints between the bricks or masonry facing elements are not desired, the step of placing the pointing strips or material 28 between the bricks may, of course, be omitted. Also, the steps 2 and 3 may sometimes be consolidated and this would be especially so where natural colored cement between the joints and the bricks is satisfactory or desirable.

Thin bricks are preferably used as the masonry facing, but it is evident that the elements of the masonry facing might take other forms, for example, might be a stone or rock facing.

From the foregoing it is evident that the process and product described are capable of modification within the scope of the invention herein broadly claimed.

In actual practice, a masonry faced wall board has been produced at comparatively small cost and wherein a compressed fibrous body, while tough and strong, is comparatively light, has high heat insulating efiiciency, and by its incorporation with the layer of cement, is very firmly united therewith. In fact, the cement used in the layer applied to the bricks or masonry elements and the cement of the fibrous material are united and the union between the cements is carried completely through the fibrous body. In actual practice, I have obtained a highly desirable board-forming body by the use of wood shavings known as excelsior dipped in or saturated with a quite light or fluid Portland cement mixture.

When the layer of cement 22 is employed as above described, it will usually be advantageous to use an integral water-proofing material in the cement.

In some cases, concrete or cast stone slabs made in imitation of brickwork or natural stone might be made in a slab and connected to the insulating material by the process above defined,

in which case the fiber of insulating material might be pressed directly into the body of the slab while the latter is in plastic condition.

What I claim is:

1. The process of making masonry-faced wall board which consists in laying a body of plastic cement, in coating the fibers of a porous body with a bath of liquid cement, in laying the body of fibrous material thus treated against said plastic body while the latter is still in plastic condition, in subjecting the same to pressure whereby said body of fibrous material is materially reduced in volume and density and is pressed partly into the unset plastic body against which it is laid, and in maintaining said materials under pressure until the said plastic body and the cement adhering to said fibrous material have set.

2. The process of making masonry-faced wall board which consists in laying masonry elements in proper relation, in laying a layer of plastic cement over and more or less between the assembled masonry elements, in coating the fibers of a porous compressible fibrous body with a bath of liquid cement, in laying a body of the fibrous material thus treated against said plastic body while the latter is still in plastic condition, in subjecting the same to pressure whereby said body of fibrous material is materially reduced in volume and density and is pressed partly into the unset plastic body against which it is laid, and in maintaining said materials under pressure until the said plastic body and the cement adhering to said fibrous material have set.

3. As a new article of manufacture, a masonryfaced wall board consisting of a cement body and a porous fibrous board-forming body, the porous face of which is contacted and pressed into said body and firmly united with the solidified and set cement body.

4. As a new article of manufacture, a layer of masonry-forming elements in spaced relation, a layer of cement laid against and more or less between said masonry elements, and a boardforming body of porous compressible fibrous material coated with cement and having a porous face pressed into and firmly united with the solidified and set cement body.

5. The process of making faced wall board which consists in laying a body of plastic cement, in coating the fibers of a fibrous porous compressible board-forming body with a fluid binder and laying the same against said body of plastic cement, in subjecting the said elements to pressure whereby the body of fibrous material is materially reduced in volume and is pressed partly into the unset plastic body against which it is laid, and in maintaining pressure against the said elements until the plastic body and said binder have set.

6. The process of making masonry-faced wall board which consists in laying the masonry elements in proper relation, in laying a layer of plastic cement over and more or less between the assembled masonry elements, in coating the fibers of a fibrous porous compressible board-forming body with a fluid binder, and laying the same against said body of plastic cement, in subjecting the said elements to pressure whereby the body of fibrous material is materially reduced in volume and is pressed partly into the unset plastic body against which it is laid, and in maintaining pressure against the said elements until the plastic body and said binder have set.

WALTER R. DENNIS. 

